Visit to Parliament

Repair Café Kenilworth attended UK Parliament to ask MPs to fix our throwaway economy

On 25th March, Repair Café Kenilworth joined repair groups from across the UK at a repair cafe in Parliament, to call for policies to make it easier to repair our things. The event was organised by The Restart Project and Back Market, and supported by other organisations including SUEZ and Green Alliance.

This year, the event was bigger than ever before, with over 90 MPs in attendance and 100 repair groups represented from all four UK nations. Organisers and allies called for ambitious repair and reuse policies and celebrated the 143 MPs that have now signed up to the Repair and Reuse Declaration, including Sir Jeremy Wright, MP for Kenilworth & Southam.

The event saw a number of speeches by politicians and campaigners alike including, DEFRA Minister Mary Creagh, The Restart Project, Back Market, and Helen Hayes MP who also signed as the honorary 100th supporter of the Repair and Reuse Declaration. Team Repair gave a live demonstration to a class of school children who learned to fix their first gadgets. And after taking Sean Fletcher’s broken toaster away with her following an appearance on BBC Breakfast last month, Fixing Factory volunteer Mikayla got to return it to him — now fixed!

With the Circular Economy Growth Plan due to be published this spring, the repair community is taking a timely chance to influence their local politicians. 4 in 5 people in the UK want the government to support repair more[1]. It reduces our impact on the planet, saves us money and can be incredibly rewarding. But for repair and reuse to thrive in the UK, we need real policy change to support it.

Repair Café Kenilworth has been running repair events are on the third Saturday of the month 2-5pm at Abbey Hill United Reformed Church since September 2021. We average about 45-50 repairs per café with a success rate of about 70% so that’s a lot if items kept out of landfill, and a lot of money saved. Our success rate would be a lot higher if we could get into the item and buy the spare parts at an economic rate. We want the idea to repair something rather than replace it to be the norm, that’s why we enjoy taking workshops into the local primary schools plus the satisfaction it gives our repairers to pass on their skills.

Fiona Dear, Co-Director, The Restart Project, says: “It was brilliant to be in Parliament with representatives of 100 of the UK’s repair cafes. Repair is something we can all do to save money and reduce waste, but it’s often too hard to fix our stuff. We want to show that repair is popular, and that government support to help us to give things a second life will also be popular. “

Katy Medlock, Back Market, says: “We were thrilled to return to Parliament for our third consecutive year alongside our partner, The Restart Project, championing repair and reuse. At Back Market, we’re on a mission to shift behaviour around new tech, encouraging more people to make the most from what they already own. Extending a device’s lifespan from 2.5 to 10 years can reduce carbon emissions by up to 68%, which is why we’re calling for greater support of the Repair and Reuse Declaration to help accelerate progress toward a stronger, more sustainable future for repair.”

1. The Repair Declaration is signed by 143 MPs and over 450+ community groups, businesses, national organisations and councils, and calls for measures to make repair more available by:

   1. Making repair more affordable, through tax reductions or repair vouchers.

   2. Reviewing and expanding the UK’s right to repair regulations to cover all consumer products, strengthen design standards, and extend repair support to everyone.

   3. Helping the public choose more repairable products, for example by introducing a repair index.

   4. Supporting a new generation of repairers through repair training, accreditation and apprenticeships.

   5. Introducing a requirement and investment for reuse to be prioritised over recycling by waste processors.  

2. The poll figures are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,051 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 12th - 13th October 2023. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+). Support indicated for the policies in the declaration was in response to the question: To what extent, if at all, would you support or oppose each of the following Government policies to keep electrical products (phone, lamp, vacuum cleaner) being used for longer?

1.       A scheme where, if an electrical product breaks, you can receive a voucher, funded by manufacturers, that allows you to pay a reduced cost at a verified repairer: 79% support (35% strongly support)

2.       Removing VAT from repair services and spare parts: 80% support (42% strongly support)

3.       Extending ‘Right to Repair’ legislation, which requires manufacturers of certain types of appliances (e.g. dishwashers, washing machines, fridges, televisions) to make a wide range of information, parts, and tools necessary for repairs available to independent repair shops, and limited parts available to consumers, to all appliances and devices, such as smartphones, laptops and vacuum cleaners: 85% support (47% strongly support)

4.       Manufacturers and retailers being required to include an index at point of sale, which displays a score on how repairable a product is: 80% support (38% strongly support)

5.       Targets for recycling centres which ensure that reuse is prioritised over recycling so that products in good condition can be used again: 83% support (38% strongly support)

6.       Funding for training, accreditation and apprenticeships to encourage more people to increase repair skills and jobs: 85% support (44% strongly support)

About The Restart Project

The Restart Project aims to fix our relationship with electronics. It supports regular Restart Parties in London, and networks of repair cafes globally. Restart campaigns for better regulation to keep electrical products in use for longer and slow the growing mountain of e-waste.

 Learn more at: https://therestartproject.org

About Back Market

Back Market is a leading marketplace for refurbished devices. Its goal is to prolong the life of tech products and reduce the impact of e-waste by supporting a robust circular economy. Offering a 12-month warranty and full transparency around device condition, Back Market makes renewed tech safer, easier, and more accessible for everyone.

Since its launch in 2014, Back Market has prevented roughly 2million tonnes of CO₂ from being released, avoided the exploitation of 160,000 tonnes of primary natural resources, and served over 18 million customers globally. Back Market is proud to be a certified B Corporation.

Learn more at: https://www.backmarket.co.uk.

[1] The poll figures are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 2,051 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 12th - 13th October 2023. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).